Yellowstone hikers found the body of 59-year-old John Wallace of Chassell, Mich. last week. Park officials say the man was killed by a grizzly bear. This marks the second death by bear at Yellowstone this year. Wallace’s body was found along a trail about five miles from the nearest trailhead. For more information about what […]

Ever driven down the parkway in Pigeon Forge toward Gatlinburg, looked to your left and wondered what that huge river-boatish building was behind everything else? We did, when we were in the area about a year ago. We snooped around. We tried to get back there. We found out that it was a ghost town […]

Our kids love a good hike. But we are, sadly, usually very under-prepared. We think, “Oh, it’s just 5 miles. No problem. We’ll grab a bottle of water.” What we forget is that 5 miles in the mountains is much, much different than 5 miles in Indiana. Don’t make the same mistakes we’ve made! Through […]

We took the kids on a cruise in July. We left from New Orleans and went to Mexico for a few days. We were gone for more than a week — spending time in New Orleans and also various ports. It was amazing. When I told a friend about the trip, she replied, “I’d rather […]

Pigeon Forge Commissioners voted to allow beer sales on patios at city restaurants during Monday’s meeting, though a vocal crowd spoke out against it. The vote was close — 3 to 2. But the amendment to the current alcohol sales ordinance passed, despite warnings of holy judgment and the falling of Pigeon Forge’s moral character. […]

A newly-formed company called CB Pigeon Forge Outlet LLC from Delaware bought portions of the Belz Factory Outlets Mall in Pigeon Forge for $4.1 million on Tuesday. It was a written bid, received before the actual auction that took place on the steps of the courthouse. Representatives of the company either were not present at […]

The historic Lucinda Ogle cabin will take more than $100,000 to fully restore, according to Anne Dearing, a member of the Gatlinburg Garden Club. That’s why the club is hosting Vintage Views this Saturday to help with costs. Vintage Views will include a wine-and-cheese reception with local authors and artists, and also the showing of […]

On Monday, I wrote about where to celebrate a birthday in the Smokies. So, today, I thought I’d take a look at birthday gift ideas for someone who loves the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. (P.S. — these could work for Christmas, too. It’s never too early…) There’s something for every budget here — from […]

Pigeon Forge city leaders are set to take their second vote on beer on patio seating areas today. The City Commissioners will vote on the matters of allowing outside sales of beer at city restaurants and sales of beer at inside the planned events center at today’s 5:30 p.m. meeting. This is a contentious issue […]

A new article from the Houston Chronicle is all about the traffic in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. It starts with this gem: As you exit off Interstate 40 for the final 15 miles before the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the little voice from the back poses the eternal question: ‘Are we there yet?’ Not quite. […]

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Who are we?

We are Jason and Kendra Beutler (along with our kids, Kinsen and Jaybin) -- a family of Smoky Mountain enthusiasts. We LOVE Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, and the Smoky Mountains. But it can be difficult to find information about the area. So we decided to make it easier. That's CabinConnection -- Smoky Mountain information for tourists, by tourists.